Reading more about the development in Mark Fischenich's article at the Mankato Free Press, Munson, 3 others split from GOP caucus, we learned that anti-omnibus-prime reforms are part of the New Republican Caucus agenda. Fischenich reports:

Working together, with like-minded lawmakers and possibly with some in the Democratic majority, Munson said the group would like to institute legislative reforms to bring more transparency and order to the lawmaking process.

"How can we do things better and have better discussions instead of leadership deciding what's voted on," said Munson, whose district includes most of Blue Earth County outside of the immediate Mankato area plus parts of Waseca, Le Sueur and Watonwan counties.

A specific example is a planned push for single-topic bills — curtailing the common practice of compiling dozens of bills into a large omnibus bill for a single up-or-down vote, often in final days or hours of a legislative session, Munson said.

As we noted then, Governor-elect Tim Walz would like to ban omnibus-prime style bills (it should be noted that not all omnibus bills stray from the path of single-issue legislation; instead, bills that have been heard in committee for funding programs related an area like transportation or natural resources are added to an omnibus bill; it's when policy that's unrelated to the funding--or different policy/funding areas are lumped together that the monster bills emerge).

One vehicle for achieving this reform might be an updated HF4501, Golden Valley DFLer Mike Freiberg's end-of-session bill to amend the Minnesota state constitution to expand the single-issue rule. Indeed, New Republicans Cal Bahr, East Bethel, Steve Drazkowski, Mazeppa, and Munson are co-sponsors, along with senior Democratic lawmakers like Rochester's Tina Liebling and Minneapolis' Frank Hornstein.

"Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to prohibit laws from containing more than one policy topic within a single subject and to prohibit major finance and revenue laws from containing policy items with no or negligible fiscal impact or which are not directly related to a fiscal item contained in the law?

“This terrible bill and the resulting veto are your creations,” said Governor Dayton in his veto letter on the Republican Omnibus Budget Bill. “Never have I seen a legislative session so badly mismanaged, less transparent, and more beholden to monied special interests.”

The Republican Omnibus Budget Bill vetoed by Governor Dayton put the priorities of powerful special interests ahead of the needs of Minnesota schoolchildren and families. The bill totaled 990 pages, was riddled with controversial policy provisions, and was introduced just two-and-a-half hours before it was put up for a final vote in the Legislature. The bill played politics with school safety, protected big pharmaceutical companies, sided with industry lobbyists over older and vulnerable adults, and protected health insurance companies from competition – denying Minnesotans access to more affordable health care. To learn more, read Governor Dayton’s veto letter by CLICKING HERE.

While the New Republicans may side with DFL reforms on the process, we're curious to see who they work together with other Republicans, Democrats and the new governor in crafting solid policy solutions.

One of these is not like the others

One final note. Prinsburg New Republican Representative Tim Miller seems to be something of an outlier in the group. His objections to Daudt's leadership appear to be personal, claiming the "leader and some of his supporters have become too hostile toward me." It's not surprising that there's tension after he challenged Daubt for the Minority leader slot, as we reported on November 12.

There's another difference: in rankings by a repurposed Tea Party group, Action 4 Liberty. Drazkowski and Munson tied for the number one slot on the group's House Scorecard, with each clocking in at 93 percent support of the group's agenda; Bahr is third at 71 percent. Miller, on the other hand, is down-list at 43 percent, ten points or more below DFLers like Minneapolis' Jean Wagenius (54 percent)' St. Paul's Rena Moran (58 percent); North Minneapolis' Raymond Dehn (top DFler at 64 percent). Many, many Democrats did better here than Miller.

Post-primary HRCC IE spending on Munson's general special election bid

In our earlier post about the new caucus, we'd cited an opinion piece that claimed that the Republican House leadership were supporting Munson's primary opponent in the special election to replace Tony Cornish. Whatever the merit of that claim, it's clear that the HRCC didn't spend any money on Independent Expenditures in the primary for either candidate.

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In a message to his Republican colleagues Miller wrote, “I have come to the conclusion that the attitudes and actions by the HRC (House Republican Caucus) leader and some of his supporters have become too hostile toward me and has made it impossible to properly serve my District first and the State of Minnesota second. Those are my priorities.”

“As we move into session my hope is that all of us Republicans will work together to defend the people in our districts from radical liberalism,” Miller’s message continued. “I for one will certainly not be working against any of you.

Say what you will about Miller, he's no Matt Dean. Then on staff at MinnPost, Briana Bierschbach reported in Reasonable Daudt that Dean, who ran for the MNGOP gubernatorial endorsement, had also sought the role of Speaker when the caucus captured the House in the 2014 elections.

The calls for unity within the caucus haven’t kept some members of the state’s Tea Party groups from raising red flags about Daudt. Jake Duesenberg, executive director of the Minnesota Tea Party Alliance, said Daudt campaigned against more conservative candidates in several local endorsement contests this spring and summer, and his deal with Democrats to bond for $1 billion during the last biennium is seen as a prime example that he lacks the fiscal conservative values they want in a majority leader.

Now morphed in Action4Liberty, Duesenberg's group was at the frontlines in capturing the Republican endorsement for running buddy Cal Bahr, over incumbent lawmaker Tom Hackbarth, Alpha News reported in MN Republican Activists Angry With GOP Lawmakers. (Learn more of the group's complaints about House Republican Caucus leadership here).

Former state representative Tony Cornish, who retired after multiple charges of sexual harassment at the legislature, supported Sanders in the primary and the official caucus twitter account was silent about the race, we reported at the time.

Jeremy Munson won the Republican endorsement for House District 23B by 79% on the first ballot. The seat is an open one due to the resignation of Rep. Tony Cornish, who was caught up in the sexual harassment panic that swept the nation.

The man Munson soundly defeated, Scott Sanders, filed for the primary on the last possible day. Speaker Kurt Daudt and the House Republican mafia are behind his campaign, again proving that if Republican rank and file put forth a candidate they don’t like, there’s no bottom to the depths they’ll go to thwart their choice.

The mafia did the same thing when Cal Bahr won the endorsement against creepy incumbent Tom Hackbarth, the guy who stalked his girlfriend while carrying a concealed weapon. Hackbarth had agreed to abide by the endorsement but was easily convinced to renege on his promise by Daudt, who knows something about personal dishonesty.

Both Munson and Bahr were supported by conservative, small-government grassroots organizations. In other words, candidates not approved of by what some members call the “House management” will be actively opposed regardless of the electoral consequences. . . .

Strikingly, the House mafia’s decision to go all in on a spoiler candidate is taken in the teeth of widespread endorsements by well known Republican candidates, including Jeff Johnson, Keith Downey, Matt Dean, Jim Hagedorn, Eric Lucero, Tim Miller, Steve Drazkowski and others. . . .

You won’t read this sort of coverage anywhere else even though most local political reporters have heard versions of what is set forth. No one will go on the record and there’s no paper trail in such a short time to suggest interference by the House mafia with the voters in 23B. This makes it hard to cover in the traditional journalistic sense. Perhaps after this column it won’t be so hard and Republicans across Minnesota, not just in 23B, will learn what “their” leadership in the House is actually up to.

That stuff seems fairly prescient now that Bahr, Drazkowski, Miller and Munson have departed from the caucus. However, the consequences to the Republicans serving in the Minnesota House makes expelling themselves from the caucus a twisted way to own one's own butt hurt about endorsement and primary battles. Bakst reports:

House Speaker Kurt Daudt, who will be the Republican minority leader when the new session gets underway in January, sent an email to Republicans Friday night saying the four members did not give him a heads up about their plans and that their actions will have consequences for how the House is organized.

“As a result of these members’ actions, we will likely be forced to lay off additional staff and the incoming House DFL majority will reduce our committee slots,” he wrote. “We had planned to notify you of your assignments Monday, but that will now be delayed.”

We'll be curious to see the Running Buddies Caucus committee assignments, as well as those of the reduced Republican caucus members.

For now, while those who expelled themselves may be own their hard feelings, we're curious to see how any of this "owns the libs."

Photo: Tim Miller, who lost a bid for Minnesota House Minority Leader to Kurt Daudt before expelling himself from the Republican caucus.

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Mute buttons are handy when watching TV and another annoying commercial comes on, usually at twice the volume of the regular programming. They proved invaluable during the past political campaign season to silence the onslaught of negative ads.

But as much as mute buttons have a place in the family TV room, they don’t belong in the Legislature. In the past couple of legislative sessions, the Republican House Speaker has had the ability to turn off the microphones on the floor with the push of a button. It was used to shut off acrimonious debate, especially in the closing hours of the session.

The new DFL House Speaker, Melissa Hortman, says she’s getting rid of the mute button. “It’s just a total violation of the culture of the Minnesota House of Representatives,” she told the Associated Press last week. “But more fundamentally it hits at the fundamental principles of democratic government.”

Indeed, the purpose of a legislative body is to conduct debate, to foster discussion and deliberation of differences and to seek solutions. It’s hard to find solutions when one side refuses to listen to the other, when the debate is muted and the microphones are turned off.

The best way to avoid acrimonious debate in the House is for legislators to listen, and listen respectfully, to each other. Legislators may be a little out of practice at this, but without a mute button to hide behind they may learn.

Hortman gained nationwide attention in April 2017 when she called for "the 100 percent white male card game in the retiring room" to listen to their women companions speaking on the House floor. Later that month, MinnPost reported Melissa Hortman still isn’t sorry.

Not only is Hortman still not sorry months later, she's the Speaker-elect and it sounds as if she still wants "legislators to listen, and listen respectfully, to each other."

Of course that mute button's on its way out.

Photo: Speaker-elect Melissa Hortman.

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A wild deer harvested in Houston County on Nov. 17 has been identified as presumptive positive for chronic wasting disease, the Department of Natural Resources said. Official confirmation will come later this week. The hunter has been notified and the DNR is making arrangements to pick up the meat and carcass.

It is the first detection of the neurological disease in Houston County since testing began in 2002.

If confirmed positive, the DNR will offer landowner shooting permits in the area around where the deer was harvested and continue to collect samples as opportunities arise through deer-vehicle collisions or archery harvest. The DNR also will consider special hunts in January or February, depending on results from additional samples.

“While disappointing, this discovery is not unexpected given the proximity of this deer permit area to areas where CWD has been found,” said Lou Cornicelli, wildlife research manager for the DNR. The buck was harvested 8.5 miles from a Winona County deer farm where a deer tested positive for CWD in 2017 and 9.5 miles from the Wisconsin border. CWD is established in wild deer in western Wisconsin and northern Iowa.

Eleven other deer were harvested off of the same property, in deer permit area (DPA) 346, none of which tested positive for CWD.

“We’ll work closely with the Minnesota Board of Animal Health on our detections, so they can define their endemic areas,” said Cornicelli.

The Board of Animal Health regulates captive deer and elk in the state. The board creates endemic areas based on the location of wild detections of CWD. The purpose is to control and monitor farmed cervid herds in the area.

The DNR responds to and manages CWD in wild deer, part of a cooperative effort to detect and contain the disease.

Complete CWD test results from southeastern Minnesota are available on the DNR website at mndnr.gov/cwdcheck. Any additional deer harvested during current and upcoming 2018 deer seasons in the disease management zone that test positive for CWD will be reported on this CWD results web page. The DNR will directly notify any hunter who harvests a deer that tests positive. Complete information for hunters about CWD for current and upcoming hunting seasons is online at mndnr.gov/cwd.

Photo: A whitetail buck.

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Dec 04, 2018

In Chronic wasting disease is both a state, national issue, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reprinted an editorial about CWD from the Rochester Post Bulletin. It's praising the request "for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of Interior to expand federal tracking and mapping of CWD and to establish universal standards for transporting deer across state lines."

A special deer hunt to help limit the spread of chronic wasting disease in wild deer is scheduled in December.

Dates

Friday, Dec. 21, through Sunday, Dec. 23

Friday, Dec. 28, through Sunday, Dec. 30

The hunts will occur in deer permit areas 603, 347 and 348 and portions of deer permit areas 343 and 345 that are south of Interstate 90.

These hunts are one step DNR is taking to contain CWD in southeast Minnesota.

Harvesting deer across a broad area is intended to lower populations locally and remove males because they can move the disease longer distances. This helps reduce the opportunity for deer to spread the disease across a larger geographic area and potentially removes CWD-positive animals from areas where the disease exists.

CWD testing is mandatory for all deer, regardless of age.

Deer must stay inside the hunt boundary until a not-detected test result is received.

The hunt is open to both residents and non-residents.

Hunt is either-sex and there is no bag limit.

Cross-tagging for bucks, commonly called party hunting, is allowed.

The antler point restriction regulation is not in effect.

Landowner permission is required to hunt on private land.

A limited number of hunting permits are available for Forestville State Park and Pin Oak Scientific and Natural Area. See the 'Where can I hunt?' section for complete information.

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The Conservation Reserve Program, which pays farmers to set aside land for conservation, will grow by 3 million acres, he said. But Peterson added that payments will be capped and landowners won't be able to get extra money to pay for things like planting pollinator habitat. "We're trying to simplify the seed, trying to get rid of the pollinator habitat stuff, trying to get this back to what it used to be," he said. "If I had my way, we'd have alfalfa and bromegrass," grown for cattle feed, in the program.

Increases the Conservation Reserve Program by 3 million acres but reforms how it works. “You will not be able to afford to put good land in the CRP,” Peterson said. Payments will be a “market-based approach — capping payments at 90 percent of the county rental rates for the continuous signup and at 85 percent for the general signup, which will occur every year. “We’ve already heard some squealing about that … because people got used to getting paid twice as much as the rental rate for CRP, and it has to stop,” Peterson said. He said the reason is there have been “all of these boutique programs that require $500-per-acre seed, and they claim they need all this money because they’re spending money on it.” He would get rid of pollinator habitat seed, which has produced weed patches. “If I had my way we’d have alfalfa and brome grass” for the CRP plantings, Peterson said.

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There's yet another public meeting about the project on Tuesday evening. Our friends at Land Stewardship Project have issued the following press release asking attendees to demand an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the proposed Fillmore County Factory Hog Farm:

On Tuesday, Dec. 4, beginning at 6:30 p.m., the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is holding a public meeting on the proposed Catalpa, LLC factory hog farm. The meeting will be at the Mabel Community Center (201 South Main Street, Mabel, Minn.). MPCA Commissioner John Linc Stine will be there to hear comments.

Catalpa LLC is proposing a massive 4,980-sow swine farrowing facility in Fillmore County's Newburg Township. This factory farm would generate 7.3 million gallons of liquid manure a year. It would also use 8.8 million gallons of the area’s groundwater annually, for a total water consumption of 220 million gallons over 25 years. It is proposed in Minnesota’s karst area, which is composed of porous limestone that creates sinkholes and disappearing springs. This geology can allow surface pollution to enter the groundwater in a matter of hours.

Take Action! Join us at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 4, at the Mabel Community Center (201 South Main Street in Mabel) for the MPCA public meeting on the environmental review of the proposed Catalpa LLC factory hog farm. The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m., but we are asking people to arrive early to get an “EIS YES” sticker, sign up to speak or ask questions and sign our petition. If you plan to attend, please contact the Land Stewardship Project's Bobby King at 612-722-6377 or via e-mail.

Photo: A "Yes, EIS" protest earlier the summer. Via MPR.

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But since the former Virginia state lawmaker is a Republican, we suspect we'll hear few objections from that sector, although it's possible one state senator who objects to industrial hemp production as "bunch of backdoor bs" for legalization of recreational cannabis might be less than enthusiastic about the appointment.

Growing hemp has been illegal in the United States since the 1930's, but in 2014, the Farm Bill said it was okay for universities to work with farmers to plant it for research. A farmer in the Valley is working with James Madison University by growing hemp on his field to aid in the research.

Growing hemp was made illegal due to its nearly identical genetic structure to marijuana. But while hemp may look similar to its psychedelic cousin, it can't get you high — hemp has much less THC, but is classified as a schedule one controlled substance by the federal government.

Valley Pike Farm learned about the opportunity to participate in the research about a year ago. Matt Lohr, who owns the farm, said they planted their crop a few weeks ago. Lohr said this research could help him and other farmers if hemp becomes legal to grow again.

"I think that being on the ground floor is always exciting when there's a new crop or agricultural enterprise," said Lohr. "I've always been one to enjoy just being on the cutting edge to explore and experiment."

The hemp is planted on six acres of land, which are sectioned off with flags to represent the different kinds of experiments they are doing. Lohr said he believes the legalization hemp, which Congressman Bob Goodlatte supports, would be a boon for many farmers.

"Farming is pretty tough, and a lot of farmers are struggling these days, so to have another opportunity for a crop to grow to be profitable would be very welcome for all producers," said Lohr.

Industrial hemp can be used for thousands of products, like rope, oils, clothes, fibers similar to plastic, food and more. Historically, it was also one of the earliest grown crops in the Shenandoah Valley, serving as a cash crop for many farmers centuries ago, when hemp was necessary to create rigging for ships.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service, formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service, provides technical assistance to farmers and other landowners through a number of programs.

According to the press release about the appointment from the USDA:

In his role, Lohr will provide leadership for NRCS and its mission to support America’s farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners in their voluntary conservation efforts through a network of over 3,000 offices in communities nationwide. "Matt has committed his entire life to the betterment of agriculture," Perdue said. "The knowledge and experience he brings to the table will help ensure our locally-led, science-based approach continues to offer farmers the conservation solutions needed to enhance their environment and commercial viability."

Lohr, raised on a century farm in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, now owns and operates Valley Pike Farm, Inc., with his wife Beth and their six children. Prior to his appointment by the Trump Administration, Lohr held public office, serving in the Virginia House of Delegates from 2006-2010. In 2008, Lohr was awarded Legislator of the Year in honor of his work as an ambassador for economic and community development in Virginia. He then served as Virginia’s Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services from 2010 to 2013. More recently, Lohr worked as Knowledge Center Director for Farm Credit of the Virginias, a customer-owned financial cooperative that provides resources and education outreach to local farmers and the community. And since June 2017, he has been farming full time on the family operation, which includes poultry, beef cattle, row crops, and sweet corn.

"I am honored and humbled to serve America’s agricultural industry in this new capacity," Lohr said. "As a 5th generation farmer, I care deeply about conserving and protecting our most valuable agricultural resources. I look forward to the chance to lead this valuable agency and assist our producers nationwide with their conservation practices."

Agriculture, particularly animal agriculture, is frequently attacked because of perceived negative impacts of modern agricultural practices on the environment. One of the most important and effective ways of combating misinformation and incorrect assumptions about animal agriculture is to educate regulators, activists groups and the general public about how farmers really go about their business. Poultry growers are at the forefront when it comes to conservation and environmental protection, but sometimes poultry growers and integrators don’t make the effort to let society at large know what they are doing to protect the environment. U.S. Poultry & Egg Association’s Family Farm Environmental Excellence Awards recognize poultry growers who do outstanding jobs managing their farms in ways that enhance the environment on their farms and in the surrounding areas.

Four broiler and two turkey growers were recognized at IPE for going the extra mile to be good environmental stewards. The contributions of these farm families do not end at the farm gate, they also take the time and put in the effort to help educate their neighbors about poultry farming and serve as a voice for the industry.

Valley Pike Farm

One voice that is heard frequently is that of Matt Lohr, who works with his father Gary Lohr on the family’s Valley Pike Farm in Broadway, Va. Matt Lohr was selected in 2004 by the American Farm Bureau Federation to be one of 10 participants in the Partners in Agriculture Leadership (PAL) program. The PAL project trains farmers on ways to discuss agricultural issues with the public. Growers need to be willing to speak out on topics that affect agriculture, particularly topics where the public has been misinformed, according to Matt Lohr.

“Farmers for so many years have done a great job of producing their product, but not the best job of being vocal about educating others on Ag issues. They seem comfortable going about doing their job, but not about being at the forefront. We need people in Ag to step forward on these issues who can say, ‘this is not the whole story,” he said.

Gary Lohr and his wife Ellen own the farm, which has been in the family for over 100 years, and their son Matt and his wife Andrea also live on the farm. The Lohrs raise broilers in four houses for Pilgrim’s Pride. In addition to the broilers, the family raises hay, cattle, sweet corn, pumpkins and small grains on the farm’s 250 acres. Valley Pike Farm was selected as the Family Farm Award winner for the mid-Atlantic region.

Besides working on the farm, Matt and Andrea operate a speaking business, New Directions Communications, designed to educate the public about agriculture. They have shared this message at over 25 State Farm Bureau conventions, three American Farm Bureau conferences and dozens of state agricultural events.

While Virginia's Ag commissioner, Lohr promoted a permanent farmland conservation easement program that protected farms from development, mining and other non-farming uses; the program allowed new farm buildings and processing facilities as part of the easement.

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